One particular marketing pitch you’ll run into on occasion usually starts with claiming a “shocking truth” on a particular subject. Whether it’s dieting or tax management, it’s like good marketing’s become synonymous with exposing the ‘ugly truth’ about something. Are B2B appointment setters the same?

Anyone who’s hoped to escape the popularity contests of highschool might be a little disappointed if they ever got a job in B2B marketing. The real challenge though isn’t just the fact that these contest are more intense from competing for high profile corporate attention. It’s also because all that intensity’s just been magnified as online technology throws itself in the mix with offline marketing.

It’s not really the fault of technology that more companies have increased integrating an online marketing approach (whether it’s just adding a page on Facebook or reformatting their email templates for mobile readers). It just sort of happened.

As Halloween is priming the consumer market, retailers themselves are realizing how much of the target market is actually expanding beyond the kiddies and the candy bags. If these retailers are your target market, it’s only natural for you to experience this kind of revelation right alongside them. Never underestimate how consumer sentiment eventually ripples out to impact B2B sales leads.

This points to a much larger reality that businesses are bound to face (especially as their startup days grow further and further away). When target markets change, it’s inevitable ripple effect on everyone in the supply chain.

In business, few rules can truly stand the test of time. Ironically, one such rule is that you should always brace for change. This change can take you to unexpected places and sometimes cause you to uncomfortable decisions like changing the very core identity of your business.

When the time comes to change the party line, are your B2B marketers prepared?

Without a doubt, B2B marketing is a prime source of revenue. It’s become more than a way for companies to pitch products to potential customers. Whether it is a door-to-door sales or online advertising, it’s a medium of communication.

Yet in the recent years, there’s been a greater demand for unique (and unconventional) marketing campaigns that can attract even more elusive prospects. For example, sometimes the marketing department alone won’t be enough to execute a marketing strategy. Sometimes you bring in even the CEO himself both in terms of advertising as well as casting his life as an industry thought leader.

With all this talk of big data, bigger CRM, and cross-channel automation, you’d think that everyone in the world of B2B marketing and sales is going to look like they work on a S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier.

But in truth? In spite of all the tracking, sophisticated security, and big-time data crunching, sometimes it’s still better to go manual when you’re looking for sales leads.

Ever been in a situation where you had to make up the rules of something as you go along? You might’ve done it during a long road trip or when trying to past the time. However, the longer version of that actually happens during your lead generation campaign.

For example, say you’re using a mix of content and event marketing to drive prospects into your lead generation process. You present a new technology or practice that’s been shaping up the office world lately. (It could be a new HR system, EMR integration, or even just a new style of organizational structure.) However, you’re also well aware of some of the problems people run into when implementing it and thus make suggestions on how to avoid them.

With an age of information comes the race to capitalize it and at the same time, share the benefits of doing so. Yet unfortunately, that’s not usually the picture people have about it these days. Instead, everything from the most harmless lead generation campaigns up to your average government survey is viewed as suspect. “Privacy is dead” cry so many advocates.

Yet because out of fear of offending any such advocates (whether they’re in the telemarketing lists or among blog subscribers), many companies undermine their lead generation efforts.